Have You / Would You Ever....

[Groove Doctor]

Lessons with a good teacher (get multiple referrals) will get you farther than all of the equipment in the world.

Yep. I’d rather be a great player with one bass than a hack with a dozen basses.

You might only need 1-2 lessons with a first class teacher. What they teach you should take you a couple of months hard work to master.

 

[dab12ax7ef]

Maybe spending on lessons is the motivation to practice for them. I took lessons in high school and college, and I never felt prepared for the lesson. It always seemed like I was barely making it. However, it really progressed my playing. Now, I use some of the online educational tools. This has helped me continue progressing, but not at the rate of a good teacher I’m sure, since practice is self motivated.

On the other hand, one time my dad “traded” a guitar to a guy in return for the promise of “lessons”. Well the guy wasn’t a teacher and it totally was not worth it for him... I’m still mad about that.

At the end of the day, I don’t think I’d sell gear for that. But, I would save and work towards educational improvement, instead of acquiring gear for a while.

 

[Paula Warren]

For me it would be really hard to sell gear for lessons especially if I might use it at some point. What worked for me was a blend of lessons, books, you tube and websites. The lessons were helpful because the instructor would watch your fingerings and might give you good ideas to play a tune using different fingerings. Websites are wonderful but there is nothing like sitting down with a good instructor at times.

 

[DrayMiles]

It depends on what you want to accomplish and if you trust the teacher can help you with your goals... I would suggest having patience because it’s not likely to be a quick journey.
Gear has nothing to do with musicianship imo. You play what you’re blessed with until it’s obvious you need to move on. I have never had extra gear I could sell usually, and sometimes I eventually learned that it wasn’t needed really... or I matured in my critical hearing to see I needed to change course.
If you lose value after a sale, it won’t kill you. They’re only tools. Knowledge is power.
IMO...
Good luck.

 

[tubedude]

I initially voted no, but seeing your gear, I'd definitely sacrifice the Mustang for lessons...or beer.

 

[bass12]

Whether lessons make sense is entirely a function of the teacher(s) you can find.

I disagree. A big part of what will determine whether or not lessons are worth it is the student. You can have the best teacher in the world but you still have to be willing to put in the time. A lot of people seek teachers out thinking that a teacher will provide some "magic bullet" - some shortcut to success. They (the students) fail to take into account that it still comes down to time invested practising.

 

[tubedude]

I disagree. A big part of what will determine whether or not lessons are worth it is the student. You can have the best teacher in the world but you still have to be willing to put in the time. A lot of people seek teachers out thinking that a teacher will provide some "magic bullet" - some shortcut to success. They (the students) fail to take into account that it still comes down to time invested practising.

No, the magic bullet is expensive gear. Everyone knows with the right gear no skill is needed.

 

[Paula Warren]

I disagree. A big part of what will determine whether or not lessons are worth it is the student. You can have the best teacher in the world but you still have to be willing to put in the time. A lot of people seek teachers out thinking that a teacher will provide some "magic bullet" - some shortcut to success. They (the students) fail to take into account that it still comes down to time invested practising.

Good point. Nowadays seems like people don’t have the patience or discipline. Everything has to be quick/fast...give up easily...get distracted...

 

[Joebone]

I disagree. A big part of what will determine whether or not lessons are worth it is the student. You can have the best teacher in the world but you still have to be willing to put in the time. A lot of people seek teachers out thinking that a teacher will provide some "magic bullet" - some shortcut to success. They (the students) fail to take into account that it still comes down to time invested practising.

Fair point - I'll drop the "entirely" from my formula!

 

[JRA]

who cannot benefit from a lesson (or two, or more)?

 

[mambo4]

No, but i sold gear to buy a plane ticket to help my Father recover from heart surgery.
But he did teach me a lot when I was younger, so , maybe yes, in a weird way.